A Clash Between Rock Legends

The Who frontman Roger Daltrey has spoken out about his fallout with drummer Zak Starkey, calling the musician’s post-departure comments “incredibly upsetting.” Starkey, son of Beatles legend Ringo Starr and The Who’s touring drummer since 1996, was dramatically let go from the band earlier this year not once, but twice in quick succession.

While the split itself shocked fans, it’s the conflicting accounts of what went wrong during an April performance at London’s Royal Albert Hall that have kept the story alive.

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The Royal Albert Hall Glitch

During the show, the band performed “The Song Is Over,” but something went awry. Longtime Who members Daltrey and Pete Townshend claimed Starkey made a timing error. Starkey, however, saw it differently, telling The Telegraph that poor planning and under-rehearsal were to blame and that it was Daltrey, not him, who came in too early.

“What happened was I got it right and Roger got it wrong,” Starkey stated.

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Daltrey’s Side of the Story

In an interview with The Times, Daltrey dismissed Starkey’s account, saying the misunderstanding stemmed from issues with the band’s use of electronic drums. He explained that in-ear monitoring problems made it difficult for him to “pitch” properly due to excessive sub-bass in the drum mix.

“It was like flying a plane without seeing the horizon,” Daltrey recalled. “So when Zak thought I was having a go at him, I wasn’t. That’s all that happened.”

But Starkey’s public remarks clearly struck a nerve. “It was kind of a character assassination and it was incredibly upsetting,” Daltrey said.

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Twice Fired, Then Gone

The rift didn’t end there. Starkey was briefly reinstated after the initial fallout, only to be sacked again soon after. Daltrey stressed that, aside from himself and Townshend, “everyone else is a session player” and that “you can’t replace Keith Moon.”

Starkey has described the experience as bewildering, telling The Independent in June that he was advised not to collect his drum kit from storage just yet. “I don’t know what the f*** is happening,” he said, adding that unpredictability is part of The Who’s DNA.

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Why This Matters

This public back-and-forth shines a light on the volatile nature of long-running rock bands, where personal relationships, artistic control, and live performance pressures often collide. In The Who’s case, it also touches on the delicate balance between preserving the legacy of one of rock’s most iconic groups and embracing the realities of modern touring technology.

Whether this chapter ends in reconciliation or remains a permanent fracture, one thing is clear: even after nearly six decades in the spotlight, The Who’s story continues to be as unpredictable as their music.

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